HIGH INTENSITY FOCUSED ULTRASOUND FOR BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERPLASIA

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Abstract
Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) has been the gold standard of treatment for patients with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The present paper discusses the safety and effectiveness of transrectal high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for treating patients with symptomatic BPH. HIFU was conducted on 28 patients with BPH. At one, three and six months after treatment, all patients were examined for parameters including International Prostate Symptom Scores (I-PSS), Quality of Life (QOL) inquiry, uroflowmetry, and transrectal ultrasound for determining prostate volume. I-PSS and QOL showed statistically significant improvement at one, three, and six months postoperatively (P < 0.0001-0.005, Wilcoxon signed-rank test). Ten of 28 (35.7%), 13 of 28 (46.4%), and 6 of 15 (40.0%) cases were categorized as effective cases with HIFU treatment at one, three, and six months follow-up. Focused ultrasound is an exciting new technology by which tissue can be destroyed at a site distant from the source of energy without damage to surrounding tissue. Clinical experience with alternative power settings, more accurate spacing of treatment lesions, and further development of HIFU machines may improve the results. Longer follow-up of patients with further clinical evaluation of HIFU is necessary to define the efficacy of this technique.